Counterfeit Money Investigation Leads To ‘One Pot’ Meth Bust

August 13, 2014

An investigation into counterfeit money inadvertently led police to a methamphetamine operation Tuesday at a city residence.

According to Captain Robert F. Samuelson, division commander of the Jamestown Police Department, the residence - located at 519 Forest Ave. - was the site of a "one pot" methamphetamine operation, where the drug was being manufactured in a plastic two-liter bottle as opposed to several heated containers.

The bust, which occurred at 2:30 p.m., was originally intended to find counterfeit materials and equipment after police previously arrested the residents - Salena Hare, 22, and Kirby Driggers, 30 - for passing a counterfeit bill at a Brooklyn Square store.

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"It is not unusual to start one investigation that leads to another," Samuelson said. "They were making counterfeit money to support their drug habits."

Police, in addition to finding more counterfeit materials inside the residence, located several other bottles in the garage. They were removed with the assistance of the New York State Police Contaminated Crime Scene Emergency Response Team.

The scene was cleared shortly after 10 p.m.

Samuelson said it is becoming more and more common to discover methamphetamine production in homes, with this being the second or third operation discovered this year.

However, Samuelson indicated, this was the first time he saw a combination of meth production and a counterfeit operation found at the same residence in the city.

Hare and Driggers were charged with third-degree manufacture of methamphetamine, a class D felony.

They were also charged with first-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument. It is believed that they passed other counterfeit bills in Jamestown and the Town of Ellicott.